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Deke Malone got an early Christmas presentan almost-two-year-old son! Parenthood had never been among Deke's priorities, but being a dad is the hardest, and best, thing he's ever done. And it takes him back home to Montanadetermined to give his boy a family, and his parents a grandson.

Deke hadn't expected to find widowed mom Erin Jones there, too. Years ago, she'd been his best friend. And Erin is just as surprised to see Dekeespecially with a son! She had once been madly in love with him, but so much has changed. Surely they wouldn't get a second chance or would they?

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Anne McAllister's Bio

RITA Award-winner Anne McAllister was born in California, spent formative summer vacations on the beach near her home and on her grandparents small ranch in Colorado and visiting relatives in Montana. Studying the cowboys, the surfers and the beach volleyball players, she spent long hours developing her concept of "the perfect hero." (Have you noticed a lack of hard-driving Type A businessmen among them? Well, she promises to do one soon, just for a change!).

One thing she did do, early on, was develop a weakness for lean, dark-haired, handsome lone-wolf type guys. When she finally found one, he was in the university library where she was working at the time. It didnt matter. She knew a good man when she saw one.

And they've now been sharing "happily ever afters" for 32 years. They presently have four children, four dogs, and one bionic cat who, contrary to all expectations, is working on his second millennium.

Quite a few years ago they moved to the Midwest, but they spend more and more time in Montana. And as Anne says, she lives there in her head most of the time anyway. She wishes a small town like her very own Elmer, Montana, existed. Shed move there in a minute.

It all became grist for the fictional mill  as has the family history she likes to learn more about every chance she gets. She might have to try her hand at that historical, after all  especially now that she's learned more about that second great-grandfather who claims to have shot 40 men!

In the meantime, though, she is planning more contemporary Code of the West books for Desire and Special Edition, as well as a single-title Code of the West book coming in early 2002, and a trilogy for Harlequin Presents beginning in August 2000. Keep your eye on both series as characters from each are going to start popping up in each others books!